soldierboy Nick
by darroth42
Summary: A soldier in skypea's army is sick of his routine life. he wants a real adventure, and he wants real trials, not just training simulations. who better to see the world with then a group of crazy pirates? OC, naturally.
1. routine training

One piece fan fiction: Treetops

Another day in the skypea army. It used to be a job I took pride in, when that old man was the ruler. But ever since that asshole Enel came to power, My job has been nothing but enforcing bogus rules, comforting the people who were still alive, and training. So I took solace in my training. 6 hours, every day, I practiced my martial arts. Punches, kicks, throws, blocks, you name it. It quickly became routine, and I hate routine. That's why I joined the army in the first place, to deal with trouble, protect the people! Bah.

I stood straight, my tiny, useless wings tight against my back as I faced the four officers around me. The man behind me rushed at my back, very noisily. No subtlety there, and subtlety was crucial when you were fighting someone who was better than you were. I stepped to the side, holding a leg out for the fool to trip over, grabbing one of his arms to gently pull it, using the least amount of energy possible to send him tumbling into the man to my left. While I used a basic reaping toss on officers tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum, who crashed into each other with a very satisfying crash, the other two began to press the attack. These guys worked better together than the two behind me, but they were too forward, too eager to prove themselves. I spun to see their efforts. They telegraphed their attacks. A trained monkey could see where they were coming from. I mean, come on. not even a challenge. I leaned back as the one on the right threw a fist at my face, letting him connect with the kick the one on the left threw. I watched, feeling a smirk fall on my face as the man's face contorted with pain as he was punched solidly in the shin. Ooh hoo hoo, that had to hurt.

I grabbed the wrist of the man to my right, and sweeping the leg the man on the left was standing on, toppled the two into each-other. Judging on the power I pt into it and the sound their heads made as they slammed into each other, they weren't going to give me any more trouble. Hmm, was there going to be permanent damage? I'll notify the doctor later. I spin to the first two, to see tweedle-dum swinging a wild haymaker at my jaw. I quickly block it with my wrist, then it's a simple grab of his wrist, a slight pressure, and his hand is out of commission. And seeing as he's never seen real combat, I'm assuming the pain will keep him out of my hair. Tweedle-dee has, at this point, lost his temper. He's gone mental. But that works in my favor. If you can't keep your own head, how in the world can you expect to use it?

He's grabbed a bushido training sword, a solid wood thing, and he's coming at me with rage apparent in his eyes. I glanced down at the floor, gauging distance. This was an advanced move, but he was by no means an advanced student. He charged at me, skilled but stupid, and this was practice for the real thing. I tensed, waiting for the perfect moment. 3, 2, 1… I stepped into the attack, past his pretend blade. I took a quick moment just to enjoy the surprised look on his face, before grabbing his arm, twisting his elbow, spinning in a half-circle, knocking him off balance. A flick of the wrist and away tumbles the sword, a twist of my shoulders and he's on the ground, with me standing over him.

I lean in, watching his eyes widen. I shake my head. "you've got some work to do, boy. Next time? Try not to lose it."


	2. Initiates and orders

Hey, if y'all would leave a review before ya leave, I'd greatly appreciate it. Any suggestions orcomments would be nice.

I stood to examine my fallen trainees; I didn't want to actually hurt them, of course, so I'd held back, but I knew one of them had taken a bad fall, so I wanted to check the others, to make sure they were in no real danger. My gaze swept around the room, taking in the fallen fools. I couldn't believe they'd gone out of their way to challenge me. I sighed; probably some mindlessly attempted prank by some of the other home guard. I could just see them encouraging the newbies to try their luck. In fact, I probably knew a few who'd won a bet over this.

I saw her waiting in the doorway, but I was in no hurry. She was a private, a new addition to the skypea militia, and if there were important news, someone more important would have come. I take my time checking the fallen men. They were un-conscious, but otherwise unharmed. I turned to the young lady who'd been shifting uncomfortably for the last half-hour. I smiled in a friendly manner, I know I did, but she looked like I'd ripped off my gii-top, and then screamed at the top of my lungs while kicking something small and innocent looking.

I rolled my eyes at the young girl. "you know, I'm not going to bite you." I said, smiling gently. It didn't help. She stood with a rigid back, and her body language screamed her discomfort. I suppose the big bad soldier being all friendly was probably not helping. Fine, she's so set on seeing me as an authority figure; I suppose I could play the role. I saluted the young girl with a formal "heso." She saluted back, so business-like; it was hard to keep a straight face. She was so young, how in the world could she have become so serious? "You're clearly not here to make chit chat, so report." I said, dropping the salute and putting my baritone to use, putting the command into my words. Look at me, the big bad soldier boy.

"H-heso sir nick, I'm t-to report to you and bring you up to date on current events, then take your subsequent orders back to your men." She stuttered at first. This was probably her first assignment. I'd certainly not seen her before, and she was definitely new if she thought they were _my _men. Nope, they were loyal to that douche, Enel, and I had issues with bullies, so naturally, he and I didn't get along; but I'm not stupid. If his orders ever conflicted with mine, "_my men_" wouldn't hesitate to axe-dial me in the back. It wasn't personal. Orders were orders and all. I shook my head at the young girl. Just another puppet, I suppose. I wonder if she knew what she was getting into. I sighed, and then motioned for her to proceed. She nodded, and then began her report.

"sir. God Enel has seen- with his mantra of course- that the savages will attack again soon, and wishes for you to have a battle plan ready. On top of this news, the old woman who watches the entry gates of earth has sent word of a pirate crew ascending the knock up stream. They failed to pay the entry fee, and as such, are now wanted criminals, so they'll need to be dealt with as well." It was recited; clearly she'd rehearsed the report several times. I guess she was just that afraid of messing up; Something I could understand, having at one time been an initiate as well.. I said nothing, waiting for her to finish, but when she started shifting restlessly again, I gathered that she was done.

I sighed, scratching the back of my neck. "savages" indeed; they were here first, so naturally we needed to brand them as something derogatory and inferior in order to justify our war with them. They were strong, reasonably well-equipped, their leaders were good strategists, and worst of all, they were dedicated to their cause with impressive zeal. The leaders would have analyzed our last strategy and planned accordingly. They were mostly reactionary in their plans. Making the plan wasn't the hard part. Since we strongly defended the gates and villages, they decided to go around them and attack the capital. We attacked the enemies supply-lines, and the responded by raiding our sky-farms. It was never anything new.

I turned my eyes to the ceiling and told the young girl "listen, the savages want us out, but they want our 'god' out more. Re-supply Enel's palace; send more goat-guards, they know their business well enough to defend it when push comes to shove. Tighten security around the villages they haven't attacked yet, pull the guards from the village they attacked last to do it. They tend to learn from the past, and they won't try the same thing twice. As for the pirates…" I closed my eyes. Pirates. That was a relatively new one, actually.

They probably didn't have enough land-currency, whatever they called it, to pay the entry fee. No huge crime, that fee was ridiculous. That said, if they made it to the gate from the blue sea's knock-up stream, there's no doubt they would have encountered someone hostile by now. The 'savage' locals would surely have been there to "greet" them; if they survived, then they've got some strength, or at least solid luck. I could respect that. I don't want to waste soldiers on a stupid cause. But it had to be addressed… a smile spread across my face. "As for the pirates, send a squad of those idiots- I mean, those fine, upstanding white berets." In fact, it was probably McKinley's idea of a prank to send those four privates my way. "And make sure the squad is headed by captain McKinley. In fact…" I looked at the young girl, grinning. "Tell him that it's a high priority mission, and as such, subtlety and espionage is of the utmost importance. If he asks what that means, tell him it means to belly crawl all the way towards them until the pirates address him directly."

That got a giggle out of the girl. Once she caught herself, she blushed and saluted. I fought to keep in another sigh. Oh yeah, big bad soldier boy is an authority figure, not a person. Shame on me, I almost forgot. "dismissed." I said formally. "heso." She replied before scurrying off to give out my orders. Bah, things were too cut and paste, to normal around here. But pirates, that was new. Maybe they'll bring some excitement with them?

All right! There it is, chapter two. I think it turned out all right. By the way, it might be a while until I can write the next chapter. I want to work in my character into the actual arc, but that means I have to re-watch everything up till now. I'm on 71 right now, so wish me luck!


	3. hesitation and the plunge

Okay, here's the third installment of my fic. I think I like how my character's looking, I think it's coming along, albeit a little slowly. I'm still working on other stuff, but I don't want this little project of mine to fall through the cracks. I mean, that'd really upset the three people who've read it so far. And the zero people who've reviewed it. (Not that I'd be devastated or upset if that number went up, ahem.)

…

That was the last straw. To send a Blast of destruction into the middle of a town is unreasonable, and I will not stand idly by any longer while a pretender to the throne hurts my charges, my people. This meant war, as far as I was concerned. But the fear of that false god is more powerful than I thought, I'm afraid, and in trying to convince people to join me in rebellion, I was discovered; dishonorable discharge. I only survived because of years of honest, hard work. Plus, I think they knew how much havoc I'd cause if they tried to drag me to the firing range. So, with no work, no friends, and plenty of new enemies, I've chosen my path. I am going into the forbidden island.

…

Yeah, here I go.

…

Come on, legs. We've decided this.

…

"AAAaauugh!" I yell in frustration, burying my head in my hands, and pacing in my tiny boat. The hard rock, the "earth" I think it's called, it was right in front of me. All I had to do was go into the forbidden, terrifying, hostile infested forest of "trees" that tower above me, which creeps me the heck out. man, I know this needs to be done. I've tracked the rumors, the gossip, the reports, I know that everything seems to have led to this. The rebels are attacking the island, the priest-goats are defending it, the townsfolk even say that the blue sea pirates are in here somewhere. And Enel, he's in there too. Those corrupt… ugh, calling them "priests" is a sickening perversion of the word. That round guy, the dude with the bird, that guy who did that weird thing with his eyes, even that man with his cloud sword, they're in there with that false god. I've personally met with the servants of enel, and they have this unsettling habit of answering my questions before I ask them. I've watched them catch things I'd dropped on purpose, just to see them catch them before they'd crashed and broken. I'd sparred the one with the cloud blade before as well; he always knew what I was doing before I did it. However, knowing where an attack is going to go is different from blocking it. I am confident that I can take the so called "priests" in a fight. Well, assuming that time isn't an issue. I prefer to take my time, a rushed fight is simply no fun. Thing is, I've also met Enel, and I'm not at all sure I could take him on, not face to face. But bless my soul, even if it's hopeless I've gotta try.

…

Which leads me to _taking the first step. _It's not even the fight I'm afraid of. I simply know that if I go into this with my eyes wide open, everything changes. I can't stay in skypea anymore, not after this. Even if I do dethrone god himself-Bless my soul, that's assuming a lot, isn't it?- even if I succeed here, I've still lost my purpose. I can't keep my people safe anymore, not officially. I've lost my pride, and my home along with it.

I stopped pacing, gazing into the thick woods in front of me. Therein lies conflict, trouble, danger, terror, fighting. But I think what scared me the most… in that forest, on that island, on "earth" lies my future. I smiled ruefully to myself. Hey, putting it like that… you know what? I'm not going to be a man that fears his future. I've made my choice. Now all I've gotta do is live with it. Nodding firmly to myself, I jumped from my boat onto the island, ready for what lies ahead. Whatever comes next, I am officially IN.

…

(Hey, as a note from the author, it's gonna be a while till my next up-date. I really wanna re-watch this whole series, but I'm only at arabasta as of now, so I'm gonna have to watch em all. I just felt super guilty for putting this up here and kind of ignoring it, putting it on a back-burner and all, so I thought I'd update it again, let y'all know I didn't forget that this project is a thing, I just gotta do some background research before I get anything else done, that's all. And hey, if ya have an idea, I'd love to hear it. Maybe I'll make a story just for you! it just might not be as quick along as you might like, that's all.)


	4. Goals and Progress

The enforcers, they were my goal. As I jogged through this bloody forest, I reviewed my plan: first and foremost, I needed to free the enforcers. If they were alive, that's enough for me. Honestly, I'm still a soldier at heart, even if I'd been kicked out, and the protection of my people was important to me. And IF they were in fighting shape and IF I could convince them to join my cause, then I had a solid force behind me, which would do wonders for my confidence. There were a lot of ifs in that plan though, so naturally I had a back-up plan. Assuming they're alive but not in fighting shape, I'd take them to a safe place or at least tell them where to find one, and then I start looking for Enel. I may not be able to hurt the man, but maybe I could talk to him, show him the madness of what he's been doing all this time.

"Hey, that's a white beret! Get him!" I hear from behind me. Ugh. "Hold on now boys, I have more important things to do than to whoop you here and now. Come back later, I'm sure I can spare some time for you then." I say, turning to face the voices. Shandria warriors, 6 of them. This would take some time, but it's doable. They used on dial tech, something I'd never relied on. Sure, you can breathe fire, or augment your sword to be super long, or cut through anything in your way, but that makes it too easy to hurt bystanders. I know what I am capable of, and I'll always have my own hands and feet, unless someone tales the term "disarm" a bit too seriously. Besides, dials have a flaw that I've trained myself to exploit.

Dials have an off-switch.

And the man charging me didn't know that I knew where his mighty spear's off switch was. I let myself grin, as I watched him and his buddies charge me. A deep breath, and…

I sidestepped the initial thrust of his spear, noting the smile on the man's face as I did so. That, plus the size of the spear head, meant that it was likely an explosive dial. Cunning of him to find a way to re-use his spear that way, though less Cunning to let me so near to it. I jabbed a thumb into the off switch, looked the man in the eye, and saw surprise, but moreover, I saw fear. I hate nothing so much as being feared, but I suppose it works to my advantage. He hesitated, precisely long enough for me to grab the shaft of the spear, swing it and the man around, slamming him into a nearby tree. The impact jars him, he grunts, and he goes limp. He'll be fine in time, and perhaps a bit wiser about picking fights. I turn, sure his fellow warriors are charging. I spin the spear as I turn, holding it vertical, parallel to my spine, catching a blow on it from the man's large club. Looks as though he'd taken a vearth's tree branch, and decided that was the easiest way to defeat his enemies. And hey, I like Occam's razor as much as the next guy, but once in a while, the simplest solution isn't the best one. I rotated the spear, letting the man's club carry on around in a circle, and butted the heft of the spear into the warriors face, breaking a nose while I moved in close, swept his leg, and sent him tumbling into his other warriors.

The battle carried on like that for a while, and it wasn't the only one. Those six warriors were only the first obstacle in my way, and not at all the biggest threat. But those get redundant after a while; most of the fools letting me get too close, the others run away. In all, the total time wasted was exactly enough to frustrate me, but eventually I found my goal; a huge cave, and echoing within I could hear the frenzied howls, the exhausted groans of the enforcers in their prison. I ran in, paused to push my hair out of my eyes in a familiar gesture, and looked around.

It was an enormous cavern, to be sure. To the side there was a hole in the wall, where Bars of some kind of metal reach from the floor to the ceiling to from a cage, trapping the enforcers inside. There was a keyhole in what I deduced to be a door, but my attention was on what was in the middle of that cave.

First, I noted the things I could easily pin down about it. It was yellow, made from wood and metal, mostly. That's the simplest bit of it though. I remember this image clearly, because at that point in my life, I'd never, _ever, _seen something so massive. It was sort of vessel, but how it was supposed to move was beyond me. I couldn't have lifted one of the beams used to form one of the oars sticking out of the side of it, that's how big it was. Standing before it, I was immensely aware of how I was _supposed_ to react at the sight of such an immense construct. I was supposed to be humbled, I was supposed to remember how small I was, I was supposed to be awed in the power of the man, the _God_ that had the resources, the power to build something so incredible. But mostly?

Mostly I couldn't stop feeling like this Enel guy was compensating for something, if you know what I meant. I grinned like an idiot and went over to the enforcers, checking to see if they were all right, healthy, if not happy. So many of them shuffled over to the gate to see me, I couldn't name all of them, even though these were people I've known all my life. I was elated to see them, and they to see me, but we couldn't waste any time on catching up. I was told the Prison key was on the "ark" that the enforcers had been forced to build, and yes they saw the irony, and could I please hurry up.

I nodded, said I'd return quickly, and began my ascent, climbing up the oars and making the trek upwards, into the ark. I stepped onto the deck, and almost instantly, I felt like something terrible was about to happen. I wasn't surprised, but I _was _disappointed. It was almost so simple.

…

All right, I know where I want this to go, and I'm caught up to where I want to be! Brilliant. I apologize to whoever's following this train wreck here, but good on ya, you tenacious person, you.


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